http://www.tcpalm.com/tcp/opinion_columnists/article/0,,TCP_24463_5028108,00.html

AD Angelos wrote a guest column that was published this morning.

 I am very encouraged that the state of athletics at FAU is on its way to prosperity. We believe we have stabilized our enterprise and look forward to growing the program and continuing the enhancement of our facilities and revenue opportunities.

Indeed, the future of FAU athletics is very bright.

I couldn't get the link to work so here is the article:


Guest columnist: Owls prospering on field, in class, in ledger

Print By CRAIG ANGELOS
guest columnist

September 29, 2006

As we begin an exciting new season of athletics competition at Florida Atlantic University, I wanted to take the opportunity to share with you the successes of our past year.
The 2005-06 season was exceptional for the FAU Owls. Our sports teams won five conference championships and received automatic bids to the NCAA tournaments. These and other performances allowed us to finish 79th out of 321 Division I institutions in the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics Cup finals. This ranking placed us among the top 24 percent of teams in the country and allowed us to finish fourth in the state of Florida behind the University of Miami, Florida State and the University of Florida. Of all of our great accomplishments this year, one of the most important is the successes of our student-athletes in the classroom ? about one-third of our student-athletes per semester earned a 3.0 GPA or higher.


At many institutions, the athletics program, most notably the football program, is the window to the university. We believe that in the short few years the FAU football program has been in existence, the stature of our institution has risen dramatically, not only locally and regionally but nationally. This is evidenced as we continue to have games televised nationally. This exciting opportunity will occur again this year when seven out of 12 games will air on television, including another ESPN2 game on Oct. 18, against Louisiana-Lafayette.

But the athletics program did not only see its successes manifested on the field, the court and diamond. We saw a major success in the balancing of our athletics budget. With the help of many key individuals, we have been able to put together a finely tuned business model that has allowed us to go from a $1.89 million deficit on June 30, 2005, to a $200,000 surplus at the end of the fiscal year on June 30, 2006. I am very encouraged that the state of athletics at FAU is on its way to prosperity. We believe we have stabilized our enterprise and look forward to growing the program and continuing the enhancement of our facilities and revenue opportunities.

Indeed, the future of FAU athletics is very bright. Our home season of football starts on Oct. 12, against Southern Utah, and our men's and women's basketball seasons start in early November. We extend our invitation to the community to support their local hometown team and help us become one of the premier programs in the state and indeed the country.

Angelos is director of athletics at FAU.